text:
Yitzchak Winer Certified Scribe
Sofer Stam
Certified Sofer STAM, Yitzhak Winer, is available to serve all your Torah Scroll needs. Yitzhak began his sacred mission more than twenty years ago when he was initiated into the scribal arts as a young Yeshiva student in the Land of Israel. Today, Yitzhak and his experienced and dedicated team of corresponding scribes (all Sofrei STAM themselves), carry on their holy work in the United States and throughout the world.
Their objective is to serve the ritual needs of individuals, synagogues, and the Jewish community in any and all matters regarding Torah Scrolls, while maintaining the highest levels of Halakha (Jewish ritual law) and Massorah (Age old Jewish tradition).
TorahScroll.com can help you if you want to:
Commission a Sofer Stam to custom-write a Torah Scroll (6-12 months)
Buy an already completed new Torah Scroll from our available selection (immediately)
Buy a previously owned Scroll (Certified Kosher)
Sell or donate a Scroll you already own
Have your Torah appraised
Have a Torah Scroll examined and/or repaired
Rent a Scroll for a specific ritual event
Lease a Scroll for a longer period of time
Store a Torah Scroll (short- and long-term options available)
We treat our clients with the highest degree of respect, just as we respect the various tools of our craft: the parchment, the ink, the quill. For over fifteen years, we have offered timely and dependable service to our clients. We will be happy to provide, upon request, testimonials and references from among our many satisfied clients
For more information about Yitzchak Winer see about the Sofer page.


text:
Thursday, May 21, 2009
Offbeat Integration Approaches
I'll start the ball rolling with some oldies but goodies.
SneakerNet (n,vt) Delivering of (usually) files from one place to another on some form of removable media. The sneakers, of course refer to the need to get it there quickly. Often used to bypass security or other limits. E.g. email attachment size limitations, one system unable to connect to the same network as another system. File type limitations. Usage. I can't email this to you, have you got a thumb drive, I'll sneakernet it to you.
FunnelCast Delivering of information to a large number of people by shouting through a megaphone. The most common means of getting data from the page of a professor's notebook to the page of a student's notebook.
Swivel Chair I first heard this from my colleague Adrian Apthorp. The need to take data from one system and enter it into another can be solved by sitting on a swivel chair so you can switch between the screens with minimal effort.
Have at it and exercise your creativity.
Friday, May 8, 2009
A gedanken on identity
This post arises from conversations (over many years) with John Hall, the late Keith Robinson, Bob Brown, Keri Healy, Nigel Green, Richard Veryard and Fred Fickling. It has to do with how we identify things, immutability and most recently REST. So first the story(originally related to me by John Hall):
Jason has just commissioned a wonderful boat (the Argo) so he could have adventures in the Mediterranean. He commissioned a crew of likely volunteers and set sail in search of (among other things) the Golden Fleece. This was not a short voyage – in fact it lasted many years and they had many adventures – none of which are relevant to this gedanken. Like all boats (holes in the water in which you throw money), Argo needed repairing quite often. So every winter , Argo would be taken to a boatyard and refitted. Old parts were replaced, holes patched, etc.
After several years of this, there were no original parts left on the Argo at all. Everything had been replaced, even down to the smallest dowels. Question 1. Is this boat the "same" Argo as the one originally built? Certainly the crew, the local registrar of ships and taxation authorities would think so. After all, there was no need to reregister it (her, for lovers of boats). However, we know for sure it isn't the same, in fact there isn't a single original component on the boat. So, in an information system, what is the "identity" of the Argo? Does it depend on which information system (registrar/taxation/crew sign-up, repair management for example) we are thinking about?
What we didn't know, is that the wily repair shop had kept all the old parts and had been secretly reassembling them into a boat. When the final wraps came off this new boat, he announced that this was the real Argo, and that he knew the other to be a fake. Question 2. Which is the "real" Argo? Certainly this depends on who wants to know and why? The registrar of ships might well take a pragmatic point of view and decide that the repaired Argo was the "real one" and that the rebuilt one is "something else". Of course the fine piece of woodwork on which the boat's name was carefully inscribed says Argo in each case.
Question 3 (a-f and beyond). Which of our various lenses can/should we be looking at this through? The Checkland CATWOE approach becomes an important set here because the Weltanschauung (loosely translated to be the worldview) partially determines that. I suspect that the Weltanschauung is the overarching concept that allows us to choose our lenses. So what does VPEC-T say here? What does Cynefin say here? What does Systems Thinking have to say? What do Value Networks have to say?...
Question 4. Why bother? This gedanken on its own is a fun mental exercise, but there are some underlying issues that crop up time again in our real world systems. As we start to look at the world through RESTful lenses, we come head-on into representations and the state transitions of representations, and making a clear distinction between the thing and a representation of it. So we have the Argo – and then some systematic representations of Argo. When an event (a repair perhaps) happens to Argo, we may decide to change the state of the Argo representation. Or some system may decide to, while another may not. For example crew scheduling for Argo may care less about repair events than registration. So is there just one representation of Argo (with one URI) or are there many representations of Argo?
As we wrestle with the knotty problems of identification we are forced to combat our views of history – what has happened in the past to the things we care about. How we can or cannot change other people's views of the same thing (the event streams we care about when changes are made are different from other people's). We have to worry about placing ourselves at a point in time and asking questions like, "If I were asking the question last January what would your answer have been? (very useful in market research, courts of law, etc.)"
At the bottom of this is really the "who cares about what?" question and how if we attempt to create universal data models and databases of things we are doomed. Perhaps the best we can do is to keep track of the Event and Content streams as they apply to Policy, manage our own representations of things and broadcast our state changes against those representations pushing the responsibility onto the "subscribers" to decide whether they care.
Wednesday, May 6, 2009
Services, SOA and Web Services
This article
(Can SOA Give You Good Service) identifies some of the troubles with
words when dealing with all the Service terms.
I found it a very helpful article indeed because it helps keep Service and SOA on the straight and narrow. Nice call out of the Web Service vs Service.
Interesting observation that "A service is a logical representation of a repeatable business activity that has a specified outcome (e.g. check customer credit; provide weather data; consolidate drilling reports). It is self-contained, may be composed of other services, and is a "black box" to its consumers."
Nowhere in this definition is there any requirement to get an answer back, except
maybe a status of "yup, I've done that" or "No couldn't do it, sorry". For sure
a result could come back. For sure some system state may be changed (perhaps because
of a side effect), but the key is that it is a black box. Where we do see some confusion is in granularity. I occasionally here the word operation being applied to Services.
So in your example "Check Customer Credit" above, is that really a Service invocation
or is an invocation of an operation on another Service (perhaps a Customer Management service)?
Just dealing with the granularity would help me in understanding the kinds of numbers
that are bandied about at conferences. "We have over 3000 services" vs "We have
40 services (and 3000 operations). Is that simply a packaging issue? Coming back
to the whole WS-something discussion, you make a telling point that "A Web service
is a software system designed to support interoperable machine-to-machine interaction
over a network. It has an interface described in a machine-processable format (specifically WSDL). Other systems interact with the Web service in a manner prescribed by its description using SOAP messages, typically conveyed using HTTP with an XML serialization in conjunction with other Web-related standards".
First up this says machine-to-machine. And while the computer at which a user is sitting, operating the browser is most definitely a machine, I am not convinced that WS-something is the most appropriate way of managing that interaction. It may be, but the point is not proven. Secondly, it is not completely clear to me when services actually need to be exposed (assuming that we have defined service correctly). So how much WSDL wrapping do I do? And why? In some ways - especially for internal code, WSDL wrapped service invocation is just really expensive function or subroutine calling. So even though we can define what a service is, it is harder to define what a service isn't, and harder still to choose the right architectural approach to allow for machine/machine interoperability, and human/system interoperability.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Suppose they held a United Nations conference on sustainability and nobody came?
As much as leaders of global citizen groups have tried to rally world opinion around the June 20-22 Rio + 20 conference with a petition called The World We Don't Want — a cute slam at the official declaration called The World We Want – it's time to fess up that the most anyone could have hoped for was The Words We Want. And why get involved in a war of words anymore than a war with guns?
I know about the adrenalin roller coaster at UN meets, but it's always calming to realize that little of what's resolved at these meetings gets enacted because there's no enforcement mechanism. So the evasive 46-page declaration wasn't what I wanted, and the $513 billion in commitments wasn't what's the world needs, but I was protected from disappointment by my low expectations. And I was heartened that a group at Rio grasped the true value of such conferences — a chance to meet and learn from others, and start thinking of more effective ways to get down to work.
In my books, the person of the hour, who actually named the problem of world class irrelevance during and after the flash in the pan at Rio is Michael Bloomberg. He's a multi-millionaire philanthropist, mayor of New York and head of a 7-year old group called C40 — which, confirming the advice to avoid use of numbers in founding names of orgs, is a collaboration of 59 of the world's very large cities.
After a pre-conference meeting with other mayors in Rio, Bloomberg threw down the gauntlet on the eve of the full Rio + 20 conference. The actions of C40 mayors provide "more evidence that cities have been and will continue to lead the way" in practical efforts to protect the climate and sustainability, he said. National governments can argue among themselves, he said, repeating the criticism of many speeches over the last year, but C40 cities are well on the way to implementing 4700 new projects that will eliminate 248 million tons of global warming gases by 2020.
C40 is the organization to watch, and the reason is that cities, home to over half the population, have a different calculus for weighing costs and benefits of sustainability and for putting ideas into motion.
The most obvious thing about C40 is that it's a group for cities, not nations. Scratch the surface of that, and there's more than a mere difference in jurisdiction.
Cities have very different ways of calculating cost-benefit ratios of sustainability moves, and that difference from nation states is increasingly causing conflict throughout the world.
Though cities are responsible for about 70 per cent of global warming emissions, it's a rare city that sits on, owns, regulates or reaps taxes, jobs or other benefits from oil, gas or coal reserves. As often as not, high emissions of fossil fuels in cities are the result of subsidies and other practices embedded at the national level and imposed on cities – consider the several hundred billions in global subsidies to fossil fuel companies compared to the budget for conservation or alternatives, for example.
Corporations in the resource and allied fields (pesticide and fertilizer companies that use fossil fuels as major inputs, for example) hold sway at the national, not city, level. When meetings of nations take place, the views of resource corporations figure much larger and more positively than at meetings of cities, where resources are viewed as an import, a cost, and a source of economic and environmental problems, such as smog. Cities enjoy few direct benefits from resource and allied industries, but face much higher risks from global warming than rural areas where the resources often come from. For example, cities are highly vulnerable to heat waves (made worse by the urban "heat island effect," floods (most cities border on an ocean or river), droughts and food shortages expected to increase as a result of failure to regulate fossil fuel pollution.
This difference and conflict explains why cities need to come into their own, develop their own voice and capabilities during a century when the majority of people live in cities and need support for new job-intensive service industries that help produce clean air, water and food. Global organizations that only represent national governments are obsolete in today's world, because they no longer represent the majority of people, experiences or interests of an urban world.
In stark contrast to the abstract declarations favored by the UN, the business agenda of C40 meets is brass tack practicalities. That roll-up-your-sleeves style expresses the reality of cities, again quite different from national governments. Cities, not nation states, have authority, mandate, capacity, tools, skills and wherewithal to deal on the ground with transportation, waste and building issues that give rise to excessive use of fossil fuels. Cities own many buildings, set the building code regulations for others, pick up garbage, provide public transit, license cabs and many other businesses, operate traffic lights and night lights, manage water utilities, oversee schools, and can develop official plans and strategies to reduce and offset smog and pollution.
The layout and density of cities also makes it easier for them to do the right thing by sustainability. City residents live close enough to friends and services to take advantage of walking, cycling and public transit. Office towers, condos and apartments are more cheaply renovated for energy savings than isolated homes. Likewise, the mass purchasing power of cities gives them power to influence food choices, responsible for about a third of global warming emission.
Food is one area of city life, rich in possibilities for sustainability impacts, that C40 is totally oblivious to at the present time, but sustainable food systems can thrive with help from the same kind of practical interventions that cities now promote for transportation and building efficiencies. Few mayors know more about how to do this that Mayor Bloomberg, who's made New York a pioneer of healthy food innovations.
Since no-one has yet found the nerve to tell UN officials they have no clothes, officials at these conferences, along with hapless environmentalists who take the gatherings seriously, still pretend they can actually do something, when in fact one of the few things national governments represented at the UN have the authority and tools to act on is to stop subsidizing polluting fuels, auto industries and the like. Activist governments at the national level don't need declarations from the UN directing them to do more things they don't have the mandate or know-how to do. Less is more, especially when it comes to bad subsidies.
Another reason why groups like C40 are omens of the future has to do with organizational style.
Cities have no formal authority to meet and proclaim on matters of world import. So they form voluntary networks to share information, as well as voluntary partnerships to build capacity to implement programs. This has been a tried and true way of getting things done over many millennia, and measures up well against the analysis-paralysis specialty of nation states reps who prefer more control, less independent initiative.
Funding for C40 comes largely from private foundations, notably the Clinton Foundation's Clinton Climate Initiative. (A nice thing about any Clinton initiative is that there's no need to wonder who's behind it.) Partnerships happen on the fly, as need arises, as with the collaboration among US alternative media to research climate change impacts – producing articles that are frequent tweeted to C40 followers.
When members join as yea-sayers rather than nay-sayers, networks can travel light. This strategy of organizational learning might be called, if the source hadn't been poisoned, a coalition of the willing.
The record of many C40 cities is awe-inspiring. London shows off its downtown Elephant and castle project, the biggest park addition to the city in 70 years, which will also house 2800 families and employ 5000 people. New York shows off its biggest park expansion since the 1930s (green space absorbs and sinks carbon) and also features a billion square feet of rooftop that's being greened, painted white for reflection or converted to solar panels. In Columbia, Bogota encourages electric taxis.
One C40 document refers to cities as the "test beds" for innovation. Indeed, I found in my work in Toronto, where I managed the food policy council, that cities are ideal places to conduct experimental pilot projects. Cities are one branch of government where "research and development" is manageable. C40 contributes by sharing, as they plan to do with a manual of environmental best practices. They also have a program whereby experienced city directors help with on-the-job training of directors in other cities doing similar work.
Those who want to keep abreast of the hot new trend in international civics should follow the World Cities Summit, which meets in Singapore July 1 to 4.


text: Workplace bullying; it's not a phrase you hear every day. Yet, recently, workplace bullying has become top-of-mind for many employers. Why? According to the Workplace Bullying Institute, 37% of employees experience workplace bullying, which is defined as repetitive, abusive behavior that devalues or harms individuals while on the job. In addition, persistent bullying can impact victims physically, emotionally and psychologically, which, in turn, prevents them from effectively doing their job. Therefore, it is no surprise that more employers are looking for ways to spot and curtail this potentially explosive behavior. The first step employers should take is to critically examine their organization's culture and determine whether bullying is (or is likely to be) prevalent and, if so, whether there are specific culprits. However, spotting bullying can be difficult. Instead, it may be easier to either spot or identify someone who is the subject of bullying. Here are some tips to do just that. (1) Identify whether an employee (or group of employees) is frequently the subject of recurring jokes, rumors, name-calling, or other derisive behavior; (2) Identify any employee, who although usually high-performing or outgoing, seems to be depressed, under-performing, or withdrawn; and (3) Watch for whether an employee (or group of employees) is being consistently isolated or left out of important communications or projects. (This is especially important if the suspected bully is a manager or supervisor). Identifying the bullying behavior is only part of the problem. Employers must also be sure, once this behavior has been identified, that they address these issues head on and take swift action to remedy the situation. According to the Andrea Adams Consultancy, 43% of employers do not have a policy that addresses bullying. If your organization falls into this category, here are a few things you should be doing, at a minimum: (1) Have or develop an open door policy, which allows employees to approach management or Human Resources about anything work-related. (2) Develop strong anti-harassment and anti-discrimination policies. Make it abundantly clear that harassment or other offensive conduct will be grounds for disciplinary action (up to and including termination) and that under no circumstances will violent or abusive behavior be tolerated. (3) Develop a strong anti-retaliation policy. Often, victims of bullying are reluctant to report the behavior for fear that it will only make things worse. This policy should curtail this fear. (4). Provide manager and supervisor training regarding bullying to help recognize the signs. (5) Immediately investigate any and all allegations of workplace bullying, abuse, or threats and, if warranted, consult law enforcement and legal counsel. Employers who observe any or all of the signs listed above among employees should follow-up with these individuals, inquire about the causes of their behavior, and remind these employees of the company's policies and avenues for reporting work-related problems. If the discussion reveals that an employee has been threatened in some way, employers should immediately consult with outside counsel and notify either law enforcement or appropriate security personnel to ensure that the situation does not escalate.


text:
FINAL SALE: FAIRFAX - Multi Stripe Tie in Brown/Red/Blue
$120.00 $55.00
Brand: Fairfax
This item is FINAL SALE and not eligible for returns or exchanges.
Fairfax started their business making neckties back in 1976 and ties remain the keystone in their offerings 40 years later. Their combination of materials, color, pattern and size have made them one of Japan's most cherished tiemakers for decades.
Color: Brown/red/blue
Fabric: 100% Silk
Origin: Made in Japan
Size: 8 cm wide, 146 cm long
About FAIRFAX: Long before he was shot numerous times by the Sartorialist and profiled on blogs for his impeccable style, M. Keii started Fairfax Collective in 1976 in Tokyo focusing on neckwear and classic men's shirting. Fairfax has since branched out into socks, pocket squares, cufflinks, tie clips and more, and remains a standard for quality and classic menswear design in its native Japan some forty years later. We are proud to be one of only two places in the United States that carry this very special brand.


text:
Federal appeals court upholds Walker's public union law
A federal appeals court has upheld Republican Gov. Scott Walker's public union restrictions.
The restrictions stripped most public workers of nearly all their collective bargaining rights. Two unions representing city of Madison and Dane County public workers filed a lawsuit in 2011 alleging the law violated their right to freely assembly and equal protection.
U.S. District Judge William Conley found the restrictions constitutional in September. A three-judge 7th Circuit Court of Appeals panel affirmed Conley's ruling on Friday, saying the U.S. Constitution doesn't require the state to maintain policies that allow certain associations to thrive.
The unions' attorney didn't immediately respond to an email message.
A 7th Circuit panel upheld the restrictions in a separate challenge from the state's largest teachers union in January.


text:
Sauced: Fresh Thai Sriracha
Get the Recipe
Working with Sriracha for a month, you'd think I'd be sick of the stuff, but quite the contrary. With my remaining fresnos and red jalapenos, I just wanted to make more. Since I had the "rooster-style" of this garlicky hot sauce down, I turned to the more authentic Thai version.
Long before Huy Fong's Sriracha was born in California, a sauce with similar ingredients, but a different texture and flavor was allegedly created in the Thai coastal city of Si Racha. This sauce runs thin and has a sweet, spicy, and garlicky combo that's most commonly paired with seafood.
Having never been to Thailand, I can't completely vouch for the authenticity of this recipe but from all that I've learned on my Sriracha journey, this base recipe from She Simmers (who just launched her Thai recipe column on SE!) seemed right on the mark.
I did some experimenting with varying amounts and ingredients to come up with the final recipe. Unlike last week's Sriracha sauce, this Thai version uses fresh chilis instead of fermented, so I could get immediate results.
What I ended up with was a different beast from last week's. It has a fresher, sweeter flavor with a stronger bite of garlic that'd be great for a vast array of foods—more wings anyone?
Ending a second week of Sriracha, I think I've caught a bug to keep making more hot sauce. Who knows what next week will bring.
Get the Recipe
All products linked here have been independently selected by our editors. We may earn a commission on purchases, as described in our affiliate policy.


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text:
Miken NXT Freak Light Fastpitch Softball Bat -12oz
Since the development of the game changing Miken Ultra Slowpitch Bat over a decade ago, Miken has continued to evolve a product lineup that elevates the performance of the worlds most demanding athletes. Only their patented process and the highest grade aerospace carbon fiber can deliver the unmistakeable Miken feel - the transfer of energy when the ball connects with the sweetspot that makes the opposition step back.
The Miken NXT Freak Fastpitch bat is equipped with Vortex handle technology which distributes the load evenly, allowing layers to move seamlessly together for optimal flex and performance. Combined, the result is the highest perforrming bat in the slowpitch game. The R900 carbon fiber on this NXT provides 38.8% higher tensile strength and 40% higher elongation than the industry standard carbon fiber and is proven to endure grueling play, deliver unrivaled durability, and maximize performance.
Looking for a fastpitch bat that's hot right out of the wrapper? Look no further! HBF Technology, Miken's multi-layer walls, are 100% 'fully released' for hot out of the wrapper performance. Their proprietary layering extends the barrel flex which results in a 20% bigger sweetspot and their proprietary Durashell Technology acts as a composite "shield" on the outer shell of their 100% aerospace grade carbon fiber barrel, maximizing performance out of the wrapper. 100 Comp is also used in making the NXT, the revolutionary formula that changed the game and introduced certified Miken high performance equipment. This product is engineered utilizing 100% premium aerospace grade fiber to deliver Miken's legendary performance and durability.
By utilizing the most advvanced layering handle system (Vortex) in the market along with HBF Technology, this NXT becomes the most complete bat for the hitter looking for balance and performance.
The Miken NXT Freak Fastpitch Sofball Bat is Approved for play in ASA, and is USSSA 1.20 BPF certified for play in 2012 and Beyond.


text:
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text:
Making. Creating. Simple.
It's time to find a seriously easy way to create.
Less mess
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Less Craziness
Sweet kits that include everything needed to complete your craft. Really…everything. Taking the hassle out of crafting one creation at a time.
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There are three ways to become part of Makia Creations Craft Groups..
Create on your own
Get your friends together and Host a Craft Group!
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Fresh newcraft kits are added each month!
Making. Creating. Simple.
A seriously easy way to create.
Get together with your friends and have fun doing something you love: making things!
Here's how to enter to win the $75 Gift Card….{each person can leave up to 3 separate comments! That's 3 chances to win!}
1. Follow Makia Creations on Facebook here {come back and leave a comment saying you did so}.
2. Sign up to host a craft group here{then come back and leave a comment saying you did so}.
3. Blog, tweet or facebook about the Giveaway and Kara's Party Ideas & come back & leave a comment saying you did so.
Good luck!! Giveaway ends this Friday {January 21} at 11:59pm!


text:
So you think you want a Portuguese Water Dog puppy?
We know that Portuguese Water Dog puppies are cute. But we also know they are not the right dog for everyone. Before you buy one, we'd like to help you make sure that having a Portuguese Water Dog is the right dog for you.
If you are getting started researching the breed, we suggest that you read our Puppy Information articles series. It contains a lot of really good general information about selecting the right kind of dog for your family, selecting a breeder, and specific information about Portuguese Water Dogs.
If you have already decided to get a Portuguese Water Dog, we recommend that you read choosing the right Portuguese Water Dog breeder and puppy.
List of breeders who are currently participating in the PWDCA Breeder Referral Program.


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My husband and I live in Australia, we are Us Citizens. Our son is going to attend ninth grade this August, in Missouri. His uncle will be his gaurdian.
We are trying to find medical and dental cover for the school year. 1st aud 2007 to 1st june 2008.
He will be playing football and doing whatever sports are happening, this is why we will feel the to make sure that he will be covered for every possible issue.
I look forward to getting a quote.


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A Halloween hazing incident ended in a pledge requiring surgery for an injury.
A fraternity at a southwest Ohio college has been kicked off campus following what officials said was a Halloween hazing incident that ended in a pledge requiring surgery for an injury.
The Dayton Daily News reports that Wilmington College said it will never again recognize Gamma Phi Gamma as a campus organization.
The Quaker college of about 1,000 students southeast of Dayton acted after an Oct. 30 fraternity ceremony. Clinton County Municipal Court records said the pledge was injured when he was struck with a towel "fashioned as a weapon" and then needed surgery to have a testicle removed.
College spokesman Randy Sarvis said the fraternity unsuccessfully appealed the suspension. It can make a final appeal to college President Jim Reynolds, but it wasn't clear if that would happen.


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IHCDA is not currently operating any short term rental assistance programs. Please contact your township trustee for rental assistance options in your area:
For long term rental assistance, please refer to the Section 8 page.
Emergency Solutions Grant Rapid Re-housing (ESG RR)
Rapid Re-housing is defined as providing services and rental assistance to assist a homeless individual or family to move as quickly as possible into permanent housing and achieve stability in that housing. This program provides funding for the rapid re-housing of households at or below the 30% of Area Median Income for which no appropriate housing options are identified and that lack sufficient resources and support networks to immediately obtain housing.
Private nonprofit organizations and units of general purpose local government in the State of Indiana will administer the ESG-Rapid Re-housing program in coordination with their regional Planning Councils on the Homeless. Recipients must meet the Housing and Urban Development Definition of Homeless.
To apply, contact your local agency:
|Area Served
|Contact Number
|Aurora, Inc.
|Aspire Indiana, Inc.
|Madison, Hamilton, Boone, Hendricks, Hancock
|Human Services, Inc.
|Jackson, Jennings, Shelby, Johnson, Bartholomew, Decatur
|Community Action of Northwest Indiana
|Allen, Elkhart, Kosciusko
|Continuum of Care of Northwest Indiana
|Gary, IN
|Lafayette Transitional Housing
|Lafayette, IN
|Housing Opportunities
* If your county is not listed, they have not applied for the Rapid Re-Housing Grant. Please contact your local shelters for potential assistance transitioning out of homelessness.


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A man on a mission, Terry Taylor heads up the Louisville-based inter-religious non-profit organization, Interfaith Paths to Peace. When he's not traveling to countries as diverse as Morocco, Qatar, Turkey and Japan to support positive interfaith interaction, the author of "A Spirituality for Brokenness†can be found right here in the River City, organizing events for people of every faith and encouraging conversation and progress at home. He and IPP will host the National Peacemakers Day Celebration, Sept. 29 at 6:30 p.m. at Highland Baptist Church, an event that is free with reservations and open to the public. The evening will feature a vegetarian dinner and interactive presentation on non-violent communication. "We realized at some point that there is no day on the calendar that really honors those who have devoted their lives, and in some cases given their lives, in the pursuit of peacemaking. So we do this event every Fall, on or around Gandhi's birthday,†Taylor explained. "Finding ways to solve our problems verbally with nonviolence is just as important as finding a way to put down the guns and knives. So that's what this particular dinner and program is going to be about.†The following Sunday, Sept. 30, from 1 to 5 p.m. at the Plymouth Community Renewal Center, 1626 W. Chestnut St., there will be an intensive workshop on nonviolent communication, with a workshop fee of $30 (scholarships are available).
You can make reservations for these and other upcoming events, and find out more about Terry's work at Interfaith Paths to Peace, by visiting www.paths2peace.org.
What is Interfaith Paths to Peace about?Â
Increasing interreligious understanding. And we do that by doing a full rainbow of different kinds of events and activities, designed to bring people of different religions together to interact. Over the last few years we've evolved into a way of doing things that's almost always positive. And we've discovered that when you're for things, rather than against things, it makes it very easy for people to be part of what you're doing.
What religions are typically represented at your events?
Well, just about any you can think of! Certainly Christianity, Judaism, Hinduism, Buddhism, the Bahá'à religion (and) the Asian religions.
Why do you think it is so important for people of different faiths to interact?
We believe that when people of different religions get to know and understand each other, our community, the nation and the world become more peaceful.
Whenever someone expresses prejudice or anger toward a particular religion, I always ask, "Do you know someone who practices that religion?†The answer is invariably, "No.†When such misguided people have a direct, personal encounter with someone from a different religion, the prejudice and anger often disappear because they usually discover someone very much like themselves!
Do you work with any other organizations?
I actually work very closely with the Center for Women and Families, they gave me an award a year or so ago (the Center's "2011 Man of Distinctionâ€), and they have an initiative that I'm part of at the moment that is tentatively being called "Male Voices.†It's an initiative to help men speak out about the problems of what's now called intimate partner violence, and also rape and sexual assault, because men not only have been perpetrators but sometimes are victims in this, but we don't tend to talk about it. …Community leaders (are) taking a stand to say we need to be aware of this and we need to speak out to our fellow men about being advocates for peaceful solutions to conflicts between couples.
I (also) work with suicide prevention. I had a brother, an older brother who committed suicide when I was 12 years old. We are in the 50th year since that event occurred, and so it prompted me to see if I could be supportive of efforts to prevent suicide.
What do you like to do in your free time?
I'm a writer and an artist, a photographer. I actually have a degree in something called the Book Arts, which I learned to handcraft fine quality, limited-edition books; I sometimes make books that are like paintings or sculpture. But most of my efforts these days are in photography. So I'm a fairly serious photographer and have exhibited here and there and have an installation up as part of the permanent collection at the Center for Women and Families.
Are you writing anything right now?
I'm starting to work on another book. I had a very difficult childhood, but somebody pointed out to me that something got me through that time – what was it? I was thinking about it and so I did this little project for myself where I created a little sort of altar, and each day for 30 days, I tried to find some kind of object that represented something that got me through that difficult time in my life. And it was really a profound experience. So the book is going to tell the stories of those objects and what they represent in my life, and I hope create a model for people who have been through difficult times. This is kind of some more tools for doing what I call mending. Healing, to me, implies that you're returning to the way you were before whatever happened, and for most of us that doesn't ever happen. But the idea of mending just means that what you've been through has left a mark on you… You can sometimes actually get to a better place.


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